Cushioning structures or elements for reducing the pressure exerted upon a body may be used as mattresses, chairs, bicycle seats, benches, couches, handles, shoulder straps, bandages, impact protection pads, helmet cushioning, and the like are well-know in the art.
One goal usually in the manufacture of cushioning structures is to produce a structure capable of optimally dispersing the pressure without peak pressure points. This is even truer in the manufacture of cushioning structure, such as mattresses, devised to be used in hospitals. Another goal usually in that field is to manufacture a product that has good ventilation, and for certain cases massage effects.
With regards to cushioning structures, U.S. Pat. No. 5,353,455 (LOVING ET AL.) teaches a padding body that has flexible grid member with apertures formed in it. The apertures are defined by bordering sections of the grid member. The padding body includes individual modular elements with each modular element being resilient and each modular element having an intermediate section and an upper protuberance extending upwardly off from the intermediate section. The individual modular elements have a peripheral slit or recess formed in the intermediate section. Each of the individual modular elements is releasably fixed within a respective one of the apertures formed in the grid. One embodiment of the padding body includes a frame structure formed entirely of foam material.
Also known is the foam body described by U.S. Pat. No. 4,524,473 (FANTI). The foam material body described therein is for a bed, particularly a mattress, it has a single body part with a plurality of channels therein which extend straight and parallel to one another. These channels extend in direction transverse to the direction of elongation of the foam body over the whole transverse extension of the core.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,025,519 teaches a polyurethane foam mattress overlay that has several sections defined in a relatively flat support surface thereof. The sections are longitudinally disposed so as to correspond with different parts of a user's body. Each such section has predetermined support characteristics which are selected in relationship with such characteristics for the other sections so as to define systematized support. Specific numerical ranges and interrelationships for such sections are disclosed. A plurality of projections is formed in each surface section. In general, the cross-sectional area of such projections at the overlay support surface or at a given depth therefrom is the same within each section, but differs from one section to another. Separation distances between such projections may also vary with the respective sections. In such manner, tailored support characteristics in respective sections provide engineered support for all parts of a user's body.
Other cushioning structures known in the prior art are described in patent application US 2004/0237206 (WEBSTER ET AL.) concerning a dual-air ventilation pad, U.S. Pat. No. 5,850,648 (MORSON) concerning a ventilated mattress with semi-spherical projections, U.S. Pat. No. 4,980,940 (ISSHIKI) teaching a core material for a bed comprising a supporting base with a multiplicity of vertical cut-outs therein, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,083,335 (KROUSKOP, ET AL.) describing a foam mattress support having an intermediate layer with a plurality of ribs, themselves defining a cross-sectional area.
Also known in the art are pneumatic or elastomeric structures for distributing the pressure which present a plurality of studs for distributing the pressure exerted on it by a body. Examples of those are given in U.S. Pat. No. 6,865,759 (PEARCE); U.S. Pat. No. 4,847,933 (BEDFORD).
Although many efforts have been made in the past to produce body cushioning structures with better or optimized support for all parts of a supported body, there is room for improvements in that field.